Method and apparatus for removing skin from onions or like vegetables

ABSTRACT

An onion skin is cut into two truncated hemispherical segments and a stream of fluid is directed under the skin to remove it from the onion. The onion is prepared for the skin-removal operation by cutting off its crown and root ends and making longitudinal cuts in the skin on a first conveyor, transferring the onion to a second conveyor where it is rotated about its polar axis while first being given an equatorial cut and then being subjected to fluid streams directed through the cuts and under the onion skin. The onion-engaging means on the second conveyor are spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between the end cutting blades on the first conveyor.

United States Patent Mellon et al.

[451 Oct. 10,1972

[54] METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING SKIN FROM ONIONS OR LIKEVEGETABLES [72] Inventors: Eugene P. Mellon, Alexandria, Va.;

Lester A. Kisner, Clarksburg, Md.

[73] Assignee: Marriott Corporation, Montgomery County, Md.

[22] Filed: July 22, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 57,224

[52] US. Cl. ..l46/83 [51] Int. Cl. ..A23m 15/04 [58] Field of Search..l46/43 R, 83, 227, 230, 241, 146/51, 73

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,485,279 12/1969 Parsons..l46/230 2,788,819 4/1957 Guatelli et al. ..146/73 X 1,992,995 3/1935Denner et al. ..146/43 R 2,361,241 10/1944 Rogers ..146/37 X 2,766,79410/1956 Odale ..146/43 X FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 821,315 10/1959Great Britain ..146/83 Primary Examiner-Willie G. AbercrombieAtt0meyBeveridge & De Grandi [5 7] ABSTRACT An onion skin is cut intotwo truncated hemispherical segments and a stream of fluid is directedunder the skin to remove it from the onion.

The onion is prepared for the skin-removal operation by cutting off itscrown and root ends and making longitudinal cuts in the skin on a firstconveyor, transferring the onion to a second conveyor where it isrotated about its polar axis while first being given an equatorial cutand then being subjected to fluid streams directed through the cuts andunder the onion skin. The onion-engaging means on the second conveyorare spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between the endcutting blades on the first conveyor.

5 Claims, 16 Drawing Figures P'A'TENIEDnm 10 I972 3.696, 848

sum 1 or 7 INVENTORS EUGENE P MELLON LESTER A. KISNER 1 BY 510M 12ATTORNEYS PATENTEDBU 10 1912 SHEET 2 [IF 7 PATENTEDUBI 10 I972 3.696.848 SHEET 7 0F 7 FROM DRIVE MOTOR /239 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVINGSKIN FROM ONIONS OR LIKE VEGETABLES This invention relates to a methodand apparatus primarily intended for removing the skins from onions,although the invention may also be used for removing the skin from likevegetables which have a thin dry outer skin which is affixed to theunderlying layers primarily at the crown and root ends of the vegetable.

The prior art, as represented by the patent literature, includes manydevices for performing cutting opera tions on onions by severing thecrown and root ends therefrom or removing a core from the vegetable. Insome instances typified by US. Pat. Nos. 2,445,881, 2,602,480, 2,766,794and 3,126,930, onion skins are removed under the influence of a streamof fluid such as gas or liquid. Prior to our invention, onion skins havebeen cut longitudinally by means of a cutting blade lying in the path ofonions on a conveyor, prior to subjecting the onion to a skin-removingfluid stream.

These prior efforts have met with limited success which may beattributable to difficulties in designing suitable onion-carryingconveyors and in obtaining total removal of the onion skins in order toavoid further inspection and hand-processing.

According to one aspect of the invention, an onion processing apparatusis provided with two associated conveyors, both of which carry onions ina path which is perpendicular to their polar axes. On the firstconveyor, the onion is cut by blades which remove its crown and rootends. In a transfer section, the cut ends of the onion are contacted byonion-engaging means on the second conveyor which move together toengage the onion and remove it from the first conveyor. A significantfeature of this aspect of the machine is that the onion-engaging meanson the second conveyor are spaced apart a distance approximately equalto the distance between the constantly spaced end cutting blades on thefirst conveyor in order to assure proper engagement of the onion on thesecond conveyor.

A more significant aspect of the invention resides in the manner inwhich the onion skin is cut prior to being removed by a stream of fluid.This involves cutting the onion skin into two truncated hemisphericalbodies, preferably by removing the crown and root ends from the conveyorand making an equatorial cut in the vegetable. Preferably but notessentially, the skin is also provided with a longitudinal cut tofacilitate the removal of its skin. These operations are performed atnormal ambient atmospheric temperatures and pressures, and there is noskin-loosening pretreatment to the onion prior to entering theapparatus.

Still another feature of the disclosed apparatus involves a particularmanner in which a nozzle for removing the vegetable skin is related tothe vegetable-carrying conveyor so that the nozzle is located in thepath of moving vegetables and is supported by support means which aremovable under the influence of advancing vegetables in order to gaugethe distance between the nozzle and the vegetables. Another featureinvolves the apparatus for making an equatorial cut by rotating thevegetable about its polar axis and advancing it into engagement with acutting blade in order to make the equatorial cut.

Various other features, many of which may be employed in diverse typesof vegetable-processing operations, will be appreciated from a study ofthe following description and the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1A is a side elevation of the first conveyor where the onions arecut to remove their crown and root ends and the onion skin is cutlongitudinally;

FIG. 1B overlaps FIG. 1A in part and shows the second conveyor where theonion skins are cut equatorially and the skins are removed from thevegetable;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the first conveyor as seen along thelines 2-2 in FIG. 1A;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged elevational view of the first conveyor showing thelongitudinal cutting mechanism and the transfer area where vegetablesare engaged by the second conveyor;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of that portion of the apparatus illustrated inFIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the position of the longitudinal cuttingmechanism during a skin cutting operation;

FIG. 6 illustrates the condition of an onion as it is discharged fromthe first conveyor;

FIG. 7 is a view of the second conveyor and the equatorial cuttingmechanism, partially in section, as seen when looking in the directionof conveyor movement;

FIG. 8 is a view of the equatorial cutting mechanism as seen along theline 8-8 in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 shows the frictional drag assembly associated with thelongitudinal cutting mechanism, as seen along the line 9-9 in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 illustrates the condition of an onion after it leaves theequatorial cutting mechanism;

FIG. 11 is a side elevation, partially in section, of the skin removalsection including the swingable fluid jets which are located in the pathof an advancing onion;

FIG. 12 is an elevational view of the assembly seen in FIG. 11 as viewedin the direction of conveyor travel;

FIG. 13 is a diagrammatic view of the drive train leading to theelements of the second conveyor;

FIG. 14 is an exploded view of the adjustable coupling used in the drivetrain of FIG. 12; and

FIG. 15 is a diagrammatic view of the various elements in the drivetrain to the first and second conveyors.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE MACHINE Briefly, the preferred embodiment ofa machine incorporating the claimed inventive features comprises a firstconveyor which supports and holds the onion while moving it along a pathwhich lies perpendicular to its horizontal root-stem or polar axis.While on the first conveyor, the stem and root portions of the onion arecut off in a fashion so that the remaining body of all onions will havea constant polar or axial dimension regardless of their initial shapeand size. Then, a pair of longitudinal cuts are made in the onion skinby cutting blades which lie initially in the path of the moving onionand move outwardly from the path of the onion in order to progressivelyto make the longitudinal cut or cuts.

Next, the onion enters a transfer section where it is engaged by asecond conveyor and removed from the first conveyor. The second conveyorincludes gripping means which engage the cut surfaces at the oppositepolar ends of the onion. While being held by the gripping means, theonion is positively rotated about its polar axis and is brought intoengagement with a cutting blade which makes an equatorial cut in theonion skin. Then, the onion is advanced while continuing its rotation,into an assembly which directs jets of fluid against the longitudinaland equatorial cuts, to remove the skin from the onion. A stream ofcleansing fluid such as water then is directed on the onion and theonion is discharged from the machine for further processing.

Throughout this specification, the apparatus and the products passingthrough the apparatus have been defined by using nomenclature which iscustomarily used in defining the earth, so that the root-stem axis ofthe onion is referred to as the polar axis, arcuate cuts along thesurface of the onion from the root to the stem are called longitudinalcuts, and a circumferential cut in the vicinity of the center of theonion is considered an equatorial cut.

THE FIRST CONVEYOR As previously mentioned, the first conveyor of thepreferred form of the apparatus is used to hold and move the onion in apath which lies perpendicular to the polar axis of the onion. As seen inFIGS. 1A, 2, 3 and 5, this conveyor 2 includes a lower section formed ofa pair of continuous chains 4 and 6 which rotate on sprockets carried bythe shafts 8 and 10. Two such sprockets areshown at 12 and 13 in FIGS.1A, 3 and 4. The shaft is rotatably mounted in bearing assemblies 14shown in FIG. 1A and is positively driven in a manner described later inthe specification. The shaft 8 which carries the idler sprockets isrotatably mounted in. bearing assemblies 16, one of which is shown inFIG. 1A. The tension on the chains 4 and 6 is controlled by adjustingthe position of the bearing assemblies 16 by means of a threadedadjustment bolt 17 which displaces the bearing assembly 16 outwardly.

Onions are carried on the first conveyor by shallow cylindrical cups. 18which have interiorly chamfered upper ends and are connected to both ofthe chains 4 and 6 as will be seen in FIG. 2. When the chains are movingon the upper and onion-carrying run, rollers 19 of the chain ride on thechannel member 20 so that the cups l8will maintain a suitable elevationwith respect to the mechanisms which operate on an onion.

When mechanical operations are performed on an onion, it is desirable tohold the onion firmly on the conveyor. Preferably, this is accomplishedby providing an upper section of the first conveyor which serves as aholddown device. This is best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3. The holddownsection has a chain 22 which is carried by shafts 26 and 28 and theirassociated sprockets 30 and 32. Shaft 26 is rotatably held by a pair ofstationary bearing assemblies 27 and 29 to pivotally support the frameof the holddown section. The frame of the holddown section includes apair of spaced apart main frame members such as the one designated 34 inFIGS. 1A and 3.The general contour of the chain is maintained by virtueof chain rollers35 riding on interior guide plates 36 and 38 which aresupported by the main frame members 34. Chain tension may be adjusted bychanging the location of the shaft 28 in the elongated slots 40 ofmembers 34.

The onion-engaging portions of the holddown section are the pressurepads 42 which are spaced apart on the chain 22 a distance equal to thespacing between the cups 18 on the chains 4 and 6. The linear velocityof the respective chains 4, 6 and 22 are equal and the relativelocations of the cups l8 and pressure pads 42 are such that a pressurepad will always be aligned with a cup 18 when cutting operations areperformed.

The downward force applied by the holddown section to an onion by thepressure pads 42 is governed in part by the weight of the holddownsection which is, as previously stated, pivotally supported by the shaft26. When the apparatus is inoperative or the holddown conveyor is not incontact with an onion, its lowermost position is limited by means of astop-element 44 which engages an abutment member 46 on the machineframe. As an onion in one of the cups l8 approaches the holddown sectionof the first conveyor, there will be initial contact by one of thepressure. pads 42 with the upper surface of the onion, and furtheradvancement of the onion will raise the frame of the holddown conveyorabout the axis of the shaft 26 so that the weight of the holddownconveyor serves to hold the onion in position for onion cuttingoperations.

END CUTTING SECTION The first cutting operation performed on an onion isthe removal of the crown and root ends as the onion is advancing withits polar axis oriented transversely to its directionof movement. Asbest seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the onion is advanced into cuttingengagement with a pair of positively rotated cutting discs 48 and 50 provided with serrated sharpened peripheral edges which simultaneouslyremove the crown and root ends of the onion. Undesired displacement ofthe onion under the influence of the cutting discs 48 and 50 isprevented by the positive holding of the onion in the cups 18 by thepressure pads 42 of the holddown section.

The cutting disc 50 is coaxially supported on a shaft 51 which isrotatively mounted on the machine frame in pairs of bearing assemblies,one of which is designated 52 in FIG. 2. The'other cutting disc 48 iscarried by a shaft 54 which is supported in a pair of bearing assemblies56 mounted on the frame. The shafts 51 and 54 respectively carry pulleys58 and 60 which are positively driven in a manner described later inthis specification.

When an onion passes through the first cutting station where the discs48 and 50 are located, the crown and root ends are cut from the onionand fall into respective chutes 62 and 64 which lead to a disposalmechanism such as a garbage grinder.

LONGITUDINAL CUTTING ASSEMBLY The longitudinal cutting assemblygenerally designated 66 is used to make shallow arcuate longitudinalcuts in the onion skin to promote easy removal of the skin from theonion. This assembly includes a pair of cutting members which aremounted for movement about pivotal axes whichlie on opposite sides ofthe path of the onion. As best seen in FIG. 5, this cutting assembly 66includes a pair of stationary platform members 68 and 70 located onopposite sides of the onion path. A pair of pivoted blade-carriers 72and 74 carry the cutting blades 76 and 78 and are mounted on thestationary pivot members 80 and 82. Tension springs 84 and 86'have theiropposite ends connected to pins and 87 on the respective platformmembers 68 and 70 and to extensions 89 and 91 which are connected to theblade-carriers 72 and 74. Each of the blade-carriers 72 and 74 has anattached onion engaging element 88 and 90 which rides down the trailingportion of an onion after the longitudinal cuts have been made. Thisprevents the impact which otherwise would occur as the blade-carriers 72and 74 strike the abutment pins 92 and 94 at the conclusion of a cuttingstep.

Geometrical considerations make it difiicult for both of the cuttingblades 76 and 78 to start at a common point on the onion, so it isconvenient to displace them slightly in order to make a pair ofgenerally parallel but spaced apart cuts shown at 95 and 97 in FIG. 6.When this is done, the normal rest position of the blade-holdingelements 72 and 74 is as shown in FIG. 4 with one element lying abovethe other.

After the longitudinal cuts have been made, the first onion istransferred to the second conveyor of the machine wheresubsequentoperations are performed.

THE SECOND CONVEYOR The second conveyor is designed to advance the onionin a direction perpendicular to its polar axis and rotate the onionabout its polar axis during such movement. As seen in FIG. 4, the secondconveyor includes a pair of spaced apart endless chains 96 and 98 whichare provided with rollers 99 and 101 on their link-connecting pins. Bothchains are oriented in a plane which is substantially coincident withthe polar axis of an onion carried thereby. The chain 96 has one endsupported on an idler sprocket 100 and its other end supported on adriven sprocket, the hub of which is shown at 102 in FIG. 1B. A morecomplete description of the chainsupporting and driving means is givenbelow in connection with FIG. 13. At equally spaced points along thechain 96, there are gripping assemblies 104 which rotatively carryonion-engaging members 106. Each onion-engaging member 106 has aplurality of small projections which promote its engagement with anonion, and it is supported on a shaft rotatively mounted on the mainbody of the gripping assembly 104. The shaft which supports the onionengaging member 106 also has a pinion gear 108 keyed thereto so that theonion engaging member 106 may be positively rotated in a mannerdescribed later.

The gripping assembly 104 is guided to some extent throughout most ofits movement by supplemental guide tracks which are best seen in FIG. 7.These guide tracks include channel elements 110 which carry low frictionplastic inserts 112 for engaging the horizontal and vertical surfaces ofthe main body of the gripping assembly, in order to prevent sagging ofthe chain and undesired displacement of the gripping members.

' The gripping assemblies 115 on second chain 98 are similar to thegripping assemblies 104 except that they lack the pinion gear 108. Aplurality of gripping assemblies 115 are spaced apart a same distance asthe gripping assemblies 104 and their movement is coordinated so anonion will simultaneously be engaged and gripped by the onion engagingmembers 106 and 116. The movement of the gripping assemblies 104 and 115is coordinated with the movement of the cups 18 on the first conveyor sothat an onion, after being longitudinally cut by the longitudinalcutting assembly 66 will enter a transfer section where the onion is nolonger engaged by one of the pressure pads 42 on the holddown section ofthe first conveyor. In this transfer section, the members 106 and 116 onthe second conveyor move in converging paths until they engage the cutends of the onion and are spaced apart a distance approximately equal tothe distance between the end cutting discs 48 and 50. An onion grippedbetween the members 106 and 116 is then carried away by the secondconveyor as the cup 18 on the first conveyor moves downwardly around itssupporting sprocket 12. As seen in FIG. 7, the rollers 99 and 101 in thechains 96 and 98 ride on vertical surfaces 120 and 122 during alloperations on the onion so that there will be a constant distancebetween the members 106 and 1 16. This distance is approximately equalto the distance between cuts made by the end-cutting discs 48 and 50.

The second conveyor includes means for rotating the onion about itspolar axis during the phases of machine operation where the onion skinis equatorially cut and removed by a fluid stream. Such rotationalmovement may be imparted by engaging the pinion gear 108 with the teethof a stationary rack 118 which faces downwardly as shown in FIG. 8. Ofcourse, as the gripping assembly 104 advances in the machine direction,engagement of the pinion 108 with the rack 118 will cause rotation ofthe onion which is held between the onion engaging members 106 and 116.

EQUATORIAL CUTTING ASSEMBLY When the onion is moving along the secondconveyor and is being positively rotated, it is brought into engagementwith the cutting assembly shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 which serves to makethe equatorial cut designated 124 in FIG. 10 of the drawings. Thiscutting assembly includes a positively rotated circular cutting disc 125which has a sharpened peripheral edge. The depth of a cut made therebyis limited by the presence of a shoulder 126 which will engage the outersurface of the onion in the vicinity of the cut.

The blade 126 is carried by a shaft rotatably mounted on a pair ofswinging arms 130 which are pivotally mounted about a shaft 132, thecentral axis of which is fixed with respect to the machine frame. Achain 134 is driven by a sprocket on the shaft 132 and, in turn, drivesa sprocket 138 which is keyed to the shaft of the cutting blade 125. Theappropriate tension in the chain 134 may be maintained by an idler wheel140.

The apparatus is constructed so the blade 126 lies in the path on anonion which is advancing and rotating on the second conveyor. Engagementof an onion with the blade 126 will, of course, result in the equatorialcutting step and displacement of the arms 130 in a counter-clockwisedirection as viewed in F IG. 8.

Since proper operation of the cutting blade 126 requires that somepressure he applied against the onion, the arms 130 carry an upwardextension 142 which pivotally receives an eye on the end of a rod 144.The rod passes through an opening in a stationary frame element 146, anda compression spring 148 acts between the frame element 146 and a washer150 keyed to the rod 144 in order to apply a clockwise torque on the arm130.

Experience has shown that some frictional resistance to movement of thearm 130 is also desirable. This is provided by means of a verticallyrecriprocable member 152 which is slotted so that its undersurface is infrictional engagement with the rod 144. A compression spring 154surrounds an upstanding rod 156 which is guidingly supported by abracket 158 attached to the frame. This arrangement tends to dampen themovements of the blade-supporting arms 130 and promote efficientoperation of the apparatus.

SKIN REMOVAL ASSEMBLY After the onion skin has been provided withequatorial and. longitudinal cuts, the skin may be removed by rotatingthe onion while directing a fluid stream thereagainst. The skin removalassembly in the preferred version of the apparatus is illustrated bestin FIGS. 11 and 12. The skin removal assembly preferably includes jetnozzles, two of which initially lie on the path of an advancing onionand are displaced from the path when engaged by the onion. The restposition of the assembly is illustrated in FIG. 1B where it is inclinedslightly'toward the forthcoming onions. This assembly includes a plate160 secured to a supporting conduit 162 which is rotatably mounted onstationary frame elements 164. A rotary coupling 166 connects theconduit .162 to a fluid supplyline 168.

Tubular supports 176 and 178 connect the jet nozzles 172 and 174 tothesupporting conduit 162. The nozzles 172 and 174 areioppositelydirected and are oriented and spaced with respect to the onion engagingelements 170 so the emerging jet of fluid will strike the onion in thevicinity of the equatorial cut 124. The fluid stream passes through theequatorial cut and under the skin, thereby removing the truncatedhemispherical portion of the skin which lies between the end cut createdby the discs 48 and 50 and the equatorial cut created by the blade 126.

A second set of jet nozzles 181 and 183 are carried by the supportingconduit 162 where they will strike the longitudinal cuts 95 and 97 inthe onion skin. The fluid streams emerging from the nozzles 181 and 183areoriented principaily in planes which are spaced from the equatorialplane and lie perpendicular to the polar axis of the onion, so that thefluid will enter beneath the onion skin at the longitudinal cuts andurge the skin outwardly in a direction which is radial with respect tothe onions polar axis. The onion is rotated so that the portion of itsouter surface struck by the streams from nozzles 181 and 183 is movingin an opposite direction from the impinging streams from nozzles 181 and183.

Proper spacing and orientation of the jet nozzles with respect to. theonion is ensured by a pair of onion-engaging elements 170 and 171 whichare on the plate 160 and initially lie in the path of an advancingonion. Engagement of the members 170 and 171 with the onion is assureddue to the use of a tension spring 180 which acts between the upper endof the member 160 and an eye 182 on the machine frame. Movement of theonion against the elements 170 and 171 will produce counter-clockwisemovement of the nozzles as viewed in FIG. 11. After the onion haspassed, the elements of the skin removal assembly will return under theinfluence of spring 180 to the rest position shown in FIG. 1B.

Since it is not necessary for air to be discharged from the nozzles 172,174, 181 and 183 unless an onion is in contact with the device, it isdesirable to provide valve means which furnishes air to. the nozzlesonly when the support member is displaced by an onion. This may be done,for example, by a microswitch 184 which is actuated upon rotation of theconduit 162. Closing of the microswitch actuates a solenoid valve whichfurnishes air to the conduit 168. Alternatively, the microswitch may bereplaced by a valve assembly which is mechanically actuated bydisplacement of the skin removing assembly to introduce air to theconduits leading to nozzles 172 and 174.

WASHING SECTION After leaving the skin removing section, the onions areadvanced by the second conveyor through a washing station where adownwardly directed spray of water is emitted by a nozzle 188. Inaddition to cleansing the onion, the spray of water serves to remove anyloose pieces of skin from the onion. The spray carries such residue intoa tray which extends below the apparatus for substantially the length ofthe second conveyor. This tray 190 is inclined and it extends below theskin removing section and the equatorial cutting section so that anymatter removed from the onion at these previous stations will also fallinto the tray 190. The flow of water through the tray carries thisresidue downwardly to a collection area where it meets the residueproduced during'the cutting operations on the first conveyor. A garbagegrinder mascerates or comminutes these waste materials and dischargesthem into a sewage system.

DRIVE MECHANISMS The preferred form of the apparatus uses two motors fordriving the rotary cutting blades 48 and 50 for the end cutting sectionand the cutting blade 126 in the equatorial cutting section. As seen inFIG. 1A the shaft of motor 192 carries a pulley 194. A drive belt 196connects the drive pulley 194 to a driven pulley 60 which, as previouslydescribed, is keyed to the shaft 54 of the cutting disc 48.

The other end cutting disc 50 and. the equatorial cutting blade 126 aredriven by a motor 198 which has a shaft carrying a double grooved pulley200. One

groove in the pulley 200 receives the drive belt 202 which engages thepulley 58 of the shaft 51 in order to drive the cutting disc 50.

The second grove on the pulley 200 receives an elongated drive belt 204which drives the equatorial cutting blade 126 through the drive trainillustrated in FIG. 1B. The belt 204 rides on a pair of idler pulleys206 and 208 which are rotatably secured to the machine frame and it alsoencircles a pulley 210 which is concentric with the pivotal axis of thearms 130 of the equatorial cutting blade 126. FIG. 7 shows the pulley210 keyed to the shaft 132 which, in turn, carries the sprocket 136which rotates the equatorial cutting blade 126 in the manner previouslydescribed.

A single drive motor is used for the two principal conveyors of theapparatus. This drive motor is concealed at the base of the machineframe and carries a drive sprocket 212 which is illustrateddiagrammatically in FIG. 15. A chain 214 transmits the rotation of thesprocket 212 to a sprocket 216 which is keyed to the drive shaft 10 ofthe first conveyor.

The holddown portion of the first conveyor is driven by a gear 218 onthe shaft 10 through a reversing gear 220. The gears 218 and 220 are ofequal diameter so that they rotate at equal rotational velocities but inopposite directions. The shaft of the gear 220 also carries a sprocket222 which engages the chain 224. The shaft 26 of the holddown conveyorhas both a sprocket 226 which receives the drive chain 224 and thepreviously discussed sprocket 30 which carries the chain of the holddownassembly. The relative diameters of the sprockets are selected so thatthe linear velocity of the chain 22 of the holddown section is equal tothe linear velocity of the chains 4 and 6 of the onion-supportingsection of the first conveyor.

The second conveyor is driven from a sprocket keyed to the shaft 10, achain 228 which rides over idler sprockets 230 and 232, and a drivensprocket 234 which rotates a shaft 236 supported by hearings on themachine frame.

FIG. 13 illustrates the manner in which the sprocket 234 and shaft 236drive the second conveyor. One of the chains 98 is driven by the shaft236 through a worm gear 237 which rotates a gear 240 connected to avertical shaft 242. The drive train to the chain 98 is completed by theshaft 242 and its attached sprocket 239.

An adjustable coupling 244 connects the shaft 236 to the drive shaft 246for the conveyor chain 96. This drive train is completed through theworm gear 248, gear 250, shaft 252 and, finally, the drive sprocket 102for the chain 96.

The purpose of the coupling 244 is to permit slight adjustments in therelative positioning of the onion engaging members 106 and 116 of thesecond conveyor. As illustrated in FIG. 14, the coupling 244 comprises apair of circular flange elements 254 and 256 which are held together bya plurality of bolts 258, only one of which is shown. The bolts passthrough arcuate elongated slots 260 in the flange 254 and are receivedby threaded apertures 262 in the flange 256. It will be apparent thatthe adjustments are performed simply by loosening the bolts 258 andrelatively rotating the flanges 254 and 256 in order to bring theonion-engaging elements 106 and 116 into the desired opposed positionswhere they will accurately engage the opposite cut ends of an onion.

Those skilled in the art of designing food-processing machinery willrealize that the features in the preferred embodiment of the inventionmay be adapted to many diverse types of equipment for processing onionsand onion-like vegetables. Obviously, the sequence of cutting stepsprior to the skin-removal operation may be rearranged, the end cuttingstep may be performed differently as by removing the crown and root endsby a coring operation, or the longitudinal cutting step maybe-eliminated. The conveyor systems may be modified since there are manyways of engaging and holding vegetables while performing operation suchas those disclosed hereinabove. Since a great number of modifications tothe disclosed apparatus fall within the spirit of this invention andsince the disclosed method may be performed manually, it is to beunderstood that the scope and spirit of the invention is not limited tothe single embodiment disclosed hereinabove, but is to be 10 judged fromthe terms and by the spirit of the claims which fpllow.

We c arm:

1. In a machine for removing skins from onions or like vegetables,

conveyor means for moving vegetable in a path means for making a cut inthe skin of a vegetable on the conveyor means,

a nozzle for directing a fluid stream against a vegetable on theconveyor means,

means for rotating a vegetable about its axis while it is subjected tothe stream from the nozzle, and

support means for supporting the nozzle in the path of a vegetable onthe conveyor means, said support means lying in the path of vegetableson the conveyor and being movable under the influence of a vegetableadvancing thereagainst in order to gauge the distance between the nozzleand the vegetable. 2. Apparatus for removing skin from onions or likevegetables, comprising,

a first conveyor for advancing the vegetables in a first path which liesperpendicular to their polar axes,

a pair of cutting discs spaced apart a given constant distance and beinglocated in the first path of vegetables on the first conveyor to severthe crown and root ends thereof,

a second conveyor for advancing the vegetable in a second path whichlies perpendicular to their polar axes, said second conveyor havingcooperating vegetable-engaging means movable toward each other to avegetable-engaging position where they are aligned with vegetables onthe first conveyor and are spaced apart a distance substantially equalto said given constant distance.

3. Appartus according to claim 2 wherein the vegetable-engaging meansare rotatable about an axis which lies perpendicular to the second path.I

4. Apparatus according to claim 3 having means for positively rotatingthe vegetable-engaging means about said axis.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4 wherein the vegetable-engaging meanshas a pinion gear rotatable therewith and the means .for positivelyrotating the vegetable-engaging means is a stationary rack engaged bythe pinion gear.

1. In a machine for removing skins from onions or like vegetables,conveyor means for moving vegetable in a path means for making a cut inthe skin of a vegetable on the conveyor means, a nozzle for directing afluid stream against a vegetable on the conveyor means, means forrotating a vegetable about its axis while it is subjected to the streamfrom the nozzle, and support means for supporting the nozzle in the pathof a vegetable on the conveyor means, said support means lying in thepath of vegetables on the conveyor and being movable under the influenceof a vegetable advancing thereagainst in order to gauge the distancebetween the nozzle and the vegetable.
 2. Apparatus for removing skinfrom onions or like vegetables, comprising, a first conveyor foradvancing the vegetables in a first path which lies perpendicular totheir polar axes, a pair of cutting discs spaced apart a given constantdistance and being located in the first path of vegetables on the firstconveyor to sever the crown aNd root ends thereof, a second conveyor foradvancing the vegetable in a second path which lies perpendicular totheir polar axes, said second conveyor having cooperatingvegetable-engaging means movable toward each other to avegetable-engaging position where they are aligned with vegetables onthe first conveyor and are spaced apart a distance substantially equalto said given constant distance.
 3. Appartus according to claim 2wherein the vegetable-engaging means are rotatable about an axis whichlies perpendicular to the second path.
 4. Apparatus according to claim 3having means for positively rotating the vegetable-engaging means aboutsaid axis.
 5. Apparatus according to claim 4 wherein thevegetable-engaging means has a pinion gear rotatable therewith and themeans for positively rotating the vegetable-engaging means is astationary rack engaged by the pinion gear.